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How to make Homemade Spanish Rice/Mexican Rice. whatever you call it, we’ve got the best and Easiest Spanish Rice Recipe you can find. It tastes like it came straight from the restaurant!
It’s our go-to side dish when serving Mexican food! Not only is it simple and takes under 10 minutes to prep, but it’s perfect served with our tacos and enchiladas!
Easy Mexican Rice
I LOVE Spanish Rice (aka MexicanRice)! As previously mentioned, I’m 1/2 Mexican. I love this family heritage so much, and am especially grateful that my family has taught me to make delicious Mexican food.
My mom has been making today’s Spanish Rice recipe for as long as I can remember and first showed me how to make it several years ago (along with empanadas, enchiladas and tacos). Now, we make it on a weekly basis because my kids are obsessed and it’s just so easy.
This recipe is actually the Spanish Rice recipe of a popular Mexican Restaurant in Mesa called Mango’s (down on Main). If you’ve ever been down there and liked their rice, then you’ll love this recipe. It really is simple, delicious and the perfect side to any Mexican dish!
How to Make spanish Rice
One of the main reasons we love this recipe (other than the fact that it’s simple), is because we always have the ingredients on hand. Here are the Spanish rice ingredients you’ll need to make this delicious side dish:
- long grain rice
- oil
- tomato sauce
- minced garlic
- chicken broth
- cumin
- garlic pepper + salt
Begin by browning the rice in the oil (we use about 1/8 but it depends on how much you like). Add the minced garlic and sauté for a minute before adding the tomato sauce, chicken broth (or water and bouillon cube) and spices.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-40 minutes. Fluff up before serving.
FAQ + TIPS
How much rice per person? Plan on 1/4 cup uncooked rice per person. Once the rice is cooked it will end up being about 3/4 – 1 cup per person. If a recipe calls for 3 cups uncooked rice plan on it feeding about 12 people.
Which rice is best for Spanish Rice? We love to use long-grain white rice. It gets fluffy and does not get sticky like some of the short-grained rices.
Can Spanish rice be made with brown rice? Brown rice can definitely be used in place of white rice. Just add ⅓ c more water per cup of brown rice and let simmer longer- until the brown rice reaches your desired texture.
Can you use salsa instead of tomato sauce? Sure thing! Salsa can add more flavor and even a bit more spice to this mild rice recipe. It’s all about preference.
Which topping ingredients are best for this rice? You can add what you love most, but we often add chopped peppers, chopped cilantro, onions or even green onions.
Once all your spices and tomato sauce are added, stir and let it simmer for at least 30 minutes.
REHEATING, FREEZING + MORE RECIPES
How to reheat Spanish Rice/mexican rice? Be sure to store it properly in an air-tight container. It can last in the fridge for up to 5-6 days. To reheat, just microwave or reheat on the stove for a few minutes.
Can spanish rice be frozen? Yes, it can be frozen to be used at a future time. Simply place about 3 cups of cooked rice into ziplock freezer bags, label and place in the freezer for 4-6 months.
When you’re ready to use you can thaw the rice in the fridge or cook straight from the freezer. Using a microwave safe bowl microwave the rice on high stirring every 2 minutes until rice reaches your desired temperature.
Recipes that use Spanish Rice
Yes, we use it as a side for any Mexican dish, but we also like to use it recipes too, including:
- Burritos
- Rice bowls/Burrito Bowls
- Chimichangas
- Taco Salad
And best of all, is that it’s the best side for any Mexican meal!! Below are video and printable instructions to make the Mexican rice. We hope you can enjoy it with any Mexican dish you try.
For more Mexican rice recipes, check out:
what to serve with Spanish Rice?
- Chicken Enchiladas
- Red Cheese Enchiladas
- Beef Empanadas
- Green Chile Burros
- Baked Chicken Chimichanga
- Steak Fajitas
Spanish Rice Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain rice
- 1/8 cup vegetable oil
- 8 oz tomato sauce
- 6 stems cilantro (optional)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 4 cups water (or 4 cups chicken lower sodium chicken broth - and no bouillon)
- 1 cube chicken flavored bouillon
- dash cumin
- dash garlic pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in large frying pan on medium heat.
- Add rice and cook until golden brown.
- Add 1 chicken flavored bouillon cube to 4 cups water and microwave for 3 minutes.
- When rice is brown, add water, tomato sauce, salt, garlic, cumin and garlic pepper to pan.
- Stir and cover pan. Let simmer for 30-40 minutes or until all is cooked and there is no liquid left. Fluff before serving and ENJOY.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Delicious!
Thank you!!
Can you suggest an alternative to the chicken bouillon? It think this dish could be made vegetarian. What do you think?
Sure! I have never tried it with anything other than the bouillon, but you could try swapping it out for vegetable broth (4 cups). It may alter the flavor. You’ll have to let us know how it turns out if you give it a try!
Edward and Sons makes a Not Chick’n bouillon cube that tastes great!
Good to know! Thanks for sharing!
If I double the recipe does anything change, like the timing?
Yes, you’ll want to cook the rice a little bit longer so it has time to absorb all of the liquid. Try cooking the doubled recipe for 45ish minutes (give or take). You may need to keep an eye on it. After fully cooking and once the liquid is gone, fluff with a fork.
I made this and the flavor was great, the only issue I had was that the rice absorbed all of the water but was still crunchy, so I added more water, but that just made it mushy, I did halve the recipe, because I only cook for my wife and I. any tips or suggestions on how to make sure it comes out fully cooked and fluffy?
My suggestion would be to make sure the temperature of your stove isn’t too high when simmering. The rice may have absorbed all of the water before it fully cooked if the temperature was too high. Or maybe the lid was take off too soon letting the steam escape. Not exactly sure what would have happened. I’m also not sure how much water you added, but if the rice is crunchy, I’d try just adding 1/2 cup of water and continue simmering with the lid on. Best of luck with it the next time!! 🙂
I like it!
I am not a good cook, and rice is tricky, I followed the directions, except no microwave, just stovetop. Used diced toms instead of sauce, garlic powder and hot Indian curry seasoning, water.
When you let it simmer (VERY LOW HEAT) keep an eye on it, stir frequently, when you think it is almost done, remove for heat and leave it alone for at least 10 minutes. That’s what worked for me 🙂
Thanks for sharing!! The additional flavors sound yummy. Glad to hear you enjoyed the rice!
There is a difference between Spanish rice and Mexican rice they are not the same different ingredients are used good recipe but smh
I didn’t have tomato sauce or white rice, but I did have Arborio(risotto) rice and salsa so I substituted those ingredients accordingly. Only needed 25 minutes this way but tasted great!
Ooh those are fun substitutions! I’m glad they turned out yummy! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for such a perfect recipe! I have made this recipe more times than I can count. My MIL and husbands Nina were impressed by my cooking skills and they both cook amazing Spanish food! Thanks so much
Oh you’re welcome! I’m so glad you all enjoyed the rice!!
Wow! The best Spanish rice I’ve tasted! I don’t even want to buy Spanish rice in the restaurants anymore.. I have it at home. The taste is addictive. Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy to hear you liked the Spanish Rice. It’s a good one! 😉
I was sceptical of how this would taste, especially since I am not a fan of tomatoes. I was surprised with how delicious this turned out to be! Served it with grilled chicken, guac, black beans and corn. Yum 🙂 thank you so much for this recipe!
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the rice. The rest of the meal sounds delicious too! 🙂
Great flavor but the rice burned both times we made it. I made it once, my partner made it once, we followed it to a T and every time the pot had to be fully cleaned of burned rice. We adjusted it and decided to do it more ‘risotto’ style, stirring frequently and slowly adding the broth. This worked REALLY well once we made that adjustment.
Thank you for the feedback! I’m so glad you found a way to make it work! 🙂
I was sceptical of how this would taste, especially since I am not a fan of tomatoes. I was surprised with how delicious this turned out to be! Served it with grilled chicken, guac, black beans and corn. Yum 🙂 thank you so much for this recipe!
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the rice. The rest of the meal sounds delicious too! 🙂